Podcast Episode #66: The 21-Day Sugar Detox – FAQs and Questions Answered!

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Topics:

Intro to The 21-Day Sugar Detox [15:40]

1. Can I use vinegars like balsamic, apple cider, etc.? [18:00] 2. What can I substitute for my gum/mints? [21:42] 3. I'm super hungry – is this normal? What should I do? [26:00] 4. Is becoming extra cranky normal? [29:45] 5. Clarification of who is considered an “athlete” for modification of The 21-Day Sugar Detox standard Yes/No list. [32:10] 6. Why can we have a green apple or free-tipped banana but no berries (which have lower sugar content)? [35:15] 7. Can I participate in The 21-Day Sugar Detox on a vegetarian diet? [39:50] 8. Can I sweeten my coffee, and if so, with what? [43:32] 9. What if some of the foods on the “yes” list have sugar on the label (ex: cheese shows 1 g of sugar, bacon ect.)…is that ok? [50:00] 10. What can I do to keep from going ballistic on sweets on day 22?…again. [55:50]

LINKS:

The 21 Day Sugar Detox

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LIZ WOLFE: Hey everyone, I'm Liz Wolfe, nutritional therapy practitioner, and I'm here with Diane Sanfilippo, who's a certified holistic nutrition consultant and the New York Times Bestselling author of Practical Paleo. Remember our disclaimer, as always: the materials and content within this podcast are intended as general information only, and are not to be considered a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. It IS, however, an excellent way to fill your time after you have exhausted all recordings of Happy Endings and the New Girl on your DVR. Just sayin'.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Just sayin'?

LIZ WOLFE: I'm just a-sayin'. Okay, so do you totally want Schmidt and Cece to get back together? Because I do.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Totally.

LIZ WOLFE: Okay, me too.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Totally.

LIZ WOLFE: I'm glad I'm not alone in that.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: You need to welcome them to the episode. [laughs]

LIZ WOLFE: Welcome to episode 66 of the Balanced Bites podcast. [laughs] Oh, lord. This episode is all about the 21 Day Sugar Detox. But if you're not on the Detox, you're not planning on doing the Sugar Detox, stick around because these questions are relevant to everybody. The 21 Day Sugar Detox is Diane's signature program. But before we get into questions, I think we should probably do a few minutes of useless banter.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Indeed.

LIZ WOLFE: Yeah. So, Diane…

DIANE SANFILIPPO: For the people who only tune in for that part…

LIZ WOLFE: Yeah.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I'm going to guess roughly 80 to 90% of people listening only listen to about the first 10 or 15 minutes. [laughs]

LIZ WOLFE: Yeah, I would be fine with that. I think that's about where the good stuff begins and ends is in the first ten minutes.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Agreed.

LIZ WOLFE: [in Long Duck Dong voice] So what's-a happenin',hot stuff?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: [laughs]

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Sixteen Candles is an awesome, awesome movie.

LIZ WOLFE: Always relevant. Always.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: One of my favorites. Gotta love Long Duck Dong.

LIZ WOLFE: Yup. [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: [laughs]

LIZ WOLFE: Oh no.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: It's late. Here we go. Well, so what's happening? Let's see. I've been laying low for the last couple weeks. Trying to recover from what ended up being a total worldwind book signing tour this fall. I know it's been awhile, but for whatever reason, when I book events, I seem to think it's just going to be no big deal, easy breezy, all fun and games.

LIZ WOLFE: And it's not.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: And it's not. To a large degree, it really is fun and games, you know. I got to joke around for most of that tour with my good buddy Tony Kasandrinos. We always talk about Kasandrinos Olive Oil, and also Karen Pendergrass, who I lovingly refer to the two of them as my entourage more than once because [laughs] they were, well, you know, on tour with me. So yeah, anyway. I thought it was really funny, and we actually joked around that we should have put some kind of big signage on the side of Tony's, like Honda Element or whatever it was, that we were like Paleo Van Tour, like, you know. We got really loopy just stopping at every Whole Foods and anyway. I digress. So anyway.

LIZ WOLFE: Oh, you crazy kids, stopping at all the natural whole food grocers.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I know, eating all the Hail Merrys in sight. So anyway, I'll tell you the backlash from that. Like every time I do these things, you know, write a book, and then go on tour…

LIZ WOLFE: Oh, your life. Your life is sooo…[laughs[

DIANE SANFILIPPO: It's not hard. It's just that I don't realize at the time that all that, you know, time on the road away from my normal food, my normal training…it's fun, but man, to get back into the gym and find your lifts down like 10 or 20 pounds, or that you just can't double under like you did a month ago. It's kind of a bummer. I know it's probably not something that everybody can relate to. What is this wire that's hanging down? [laughs]

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: We can see each other. If anybody can tell, the last maybe 5 to 10 podcasts, we've insisted that we have a video open because I think it makes us a little more lively. And yeah…

LIZ WOLFE: We're able to see one another as we flip one another the bird.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Yeah, anyway. You know, for people who are usually in the gym, it's kind of a bummer when you just lose a bunch of the training that you've worked hard at for the last weeks and months. So anyway. It's kind of like a forced rest period and at least that's what I’m telling myself because well, that's what it is, right? So anyway, I’m happy to be home, back in the gym. My awesome family and friends at Brazen Athletics, eating, training, sending Hail Merry bombs to sabotage my friends' holiday, you know, stay on track plans since mine have been derailed. I did this in a very Janice Ian/Katie Herron, quietly sabotage Regina George kind of way.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Right?

LIZ WOLFE: Your face smells like a foot. No, your face smells like peppermint. [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: So for of those of you who don't know about Hail Merry macaroons, they are absolutely not approved on the 21 Day Sugar Detox, but I lovingly sent a large tin of them to both Bill and Hayley of the Food Lover's Kitchen and to Liz, and interestingly enough, Liz received them first and the card that I sent was not there. So Liz was like…

LIZ WOLFE: I really made it. [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Magical thinking, where did these come from? [laughs]

LIZ WOLFE: They're sending me their macaroons.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: And I didn't even ask for them.

LIZ WOLFE: They must really like me.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: They like me. They really like me. No, I just really like you.

LIZ WOLFE: Awww.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: And they let me send you 80 macaroons. [laughs]

LIZ WOLFE: And they were…

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Amazing! [laughs]

LIZ WOLFE: Unbelievable. Unbelievable.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: New flavor. They don't even pay us to say this stuff. We talk about so many things and we're like, you should just send us some macaroons, right?

LIZ WOLFE: Can we be like Kim Kardashian and make people pay us to hold things that have their logo on them? [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: [laughs]

LIZ WOLFE: Oh!

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Awesome. Well, so anyway…

LIZ WOLFE: 50 cents in my pocket. I'm holding a bottle of cod liver oil as I walk through the…the concourse. The mall.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Yeah.

LIZ WOLFE: Terrible. Anyway.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: So anyway, other than that, I've been actually working on polishing up and updating the 21 Day Sugar Detox program. It's currently a few separate PDFs, just because the files get really big, but it's not changing necessarily, but it's getting a lot of updates, some new recipes, a little bit of a facelift, sort of to the look and feel of the program guides themselves. And a couple of other really new exciting things. One thing that I started to work on a long time ago and just really needed to kind of, I don't know, sit down and focus on more is an email series, which comes with the program, so you don't have to spend any extra money on it. And for the folks who already have the Sugar Detox program, you will find out how you can join up so that each time we have a new program, or we say, okay, there's a new group starting, you can sign up for the emails. And what's cool is, you know, they're designed to be helping you along every step of the way, and you'll get them every day, actually a couple days before and a couple days after, and they will probably be the same from group to group, meaning if you start January 1st or if you start February 1st, it'll be the same set of emails. I'm sure they'll get updated over time. But something to just kind of help support you beyond the Facebook page, which I know there are some folks who aren't on Facebook, so that's totally cool. We just want to reach out and give you some more resources, recipes, send you to some other blogs of folks who've done the Sugar Detox. We've also got a couple of bloggers, some video bloggers, one in particular who we can share her video experiences to you. I think that's…I think that's going to be pretty cool. I think people are going to be really excited about that, and again, you know, it's all included. There's no extra fees. It's always been and it'll probably always be for $21 for the 21 days.

LIZ WOLFE: Oh, I get it.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: You didn't get that before?

LIZ WOLFE: I get why you do that.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: It's a dollar a day, man. What's better than that? I mean, that's like less expensive than your cup of Starbucks coffee. That’s not even like a Frappuccino. That's… a cup of coffee at Starbucks is more than a dollar.

LIZ WOLFE: Orange Mocha Frappuccino!

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I don't know what that is.

LIZ WOLFE: [xxx] I was going to say, you're fun today, but maybe I'm fun. Maybe I'm Fun Bobby today.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: [whispers] I'm Fun Bobby today.

LIZ WOLFE: So energetic after you work out. It's contagious.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Yeah, clean and jerk day at the gym. Woot woot!

LIZ WOLFE: Fun.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: You…

LIZ WOLFE: What’s up with me?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Yeah.

LIZ WOLFE: Well, the skin care guide debut is drawing near. I know I keep talking about it, but it is like, in production. The first draft, er, I'm sorry, the first design is totally done, so it's just a matter of getting it approved for the online host. I did, though, I got into a little spat. It was a little dram…a little drama with a usually every pleasant person, a friend, about the fact that this guide is going to be a paid guide. Like your 21 Day Sugar Detox, it is a product that I worked long and hard on. It's a beast of a book. It's really information dense, and it's meant to help people in the same way that a personal consultation would help someone. I can't…I just can't consult with as many people personally as I would like to, so I really designed this guide to address a need that I felt like I couldn't fill just by myself, and you know, in fact, I think this guide might be better than a personal consult in a lot of ways. Frankly, it has a much lower price tag, and I can't help everyone I want without having a product like this out there. And you know, I do understand the resistance people have to paying for Internet guides because I think a lot of people have been burned before. I definitely bought Tom Venuto's e-book back in the day. Do you know what e-book I'm talking about?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I have no idea.

LIZ WOLFE: Oh my lord. I still get like little straggler emails from his Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle inner circle, and it's like, you know, all I ended up with from that e-book, which was like some exorbitant sum of money was 6 meals a day of completely neurotic behavior. But this book, my book…think of it just like a Kindle book or even, you know, a personal consult. There's a lot of value there, and you don't have to shower and put on natural deodorant and come to my office and deal with having to spend a full, you know, several hours of your life with me to get this information. Like you know, who would want to do that? [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I love spending hours of my life with you.

LIZ WOLFE: Ugh. The worst thing I can imagine. Anyway, I just wanted to address that now because the fact is, you know, the reason we're doing this podcast in particular, we see every day the positive, you know, results from the 21 Day Sugar Detox, and seeing that, and seeing how you're able to reach people with that is really what kind of inspired me to put everything that I knew about skincare in one place in a guide. I don't know. They really kind of bridged the gap between having to go it alone and springing for a much more pricey option. Anyway, I don’t think either of us would have put these things together if we didn't know the exact need it addressed and how to address it. Do you think that's fair?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Totally. I-we do a lot of things for free. I love giving stuff away. I have guides on my website. I tell people all the time. They come to the Sugar Detox fan page on Facebook and they're like, can I do a Sugar Detox without buying the guides? I'm like, yeah, do whatever you want to do. If you just want to stop eating sugar, just stop eating sugar.

LIZ WOLFE: Mm-hmm.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: But if you want the support of, you know, a program that I've designed and modified over the years, it's been around for, I think it's at least 2 and a half years now, closing in on 3 pretty soon, and you know, I've modified it. I've added to it, and we're going to cover some of that in the questions, but I think, you know, I just think it can just be really helpful to have something that's tangible, that's like, this is what I'm doing. I know for me when I even do some kind of a reset, I do the 21 Day Sugar Detox. I'll be doing it in January. I like having some structure there because, you know, a lot of people who come to the Detox don't know anything about what I'm going to introduce, and a lot of them are already eating healthy clean, you know, sort of Paleo foods, nothing refined, what have you, and they still experience great benefit from the program, and I think it's a little bit of that structure and the support. And so, you know, whatever. It is what it is. I love to be able to put something out there and it goes to a really broad audience, and we can absolutely help so many more people with something that we get out there in this way, and it goes viral in different ways. You know, we've got a free nutrition guide on the Balanced Bites website. It's in the sidebar. It’s 25 pages.

LIZ WOLFE: 25 flipping pages, man. That's a good one.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Hey, take it. Download this podcast. Every single week, it’s, you know, an hour of each of our time every week. We're happy to do it and answer questions. So yeah, I have no issue with it, and I'll tell you what? I actually bought…I bought an e-book just last week, and I'm pretty good with taking pictures of food just because, you know, not to toot my own horn, but like, I have a good eye for it. I mean, I have a creative, sort of artistic eye. I know how to compose a photograph. Learning how to use the camera has been really tricky for me, and like so much love to Bill Staley for trying to help me because he's done an amazing job of getting me started. He told me what camera to get, lenses, etc. But I just…it's not clicking for me. The, you know, aperture and the f stop, whatever. I don't even know what I'm saying right now.

LIZ WOLFE: What are you..? Who? What?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Exactly, I don't know. But I know that people listen to us and they're like, yes, I've heard you say that 100 times. I still don't know what you're talking about. I bought an e-book on, you know…it looked great. It looked really simple. It looked like all the steps I needed. It looked like she was going to give me some, you know, before and afters, and here's what I did, and all this stuff that I just was like, this looks like it'll be really helpful, and I paid whatever I paid for it. Because I was like, you know what? I'm going to use this, and I'm glad I bought it, so long story short, I think there's a place for all this stuff, and hopefully if people are at all spun out over the fact that we have something that we charge for amongst 95% of what we do that's free, then whatever. You can't please everybody.

LIZ WOLFE: The one thing that’s not free is how you're paying me to be your friend.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: It's really expensive.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: You know, you act like you're my friend, and quote New Girl to me, which, by the way, it's not called The New Girl.

LIZ WOLFE: It's not?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Do you hate that?

LIZ WOLFE: I swear it started out as The New Girl.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: It's called New Girl.

LIZ WOLFE: Hey, Girl! I wish I didn't do that. Okay, let's get started. Maybe I'll make you an e-book where…and you can just buy that and it'll be an e-book about my friendship. It'll be a lot cheaper. Hmm hmm. Okay. 16 minutes later. Question number one. “Can I use vinegars like balsamic, apple cider, etc. on the 21 Day Sugar Detox?” And Diane, feel free to give a little context if you feel you need to about the 21 Day Sugar Detox and, you know, how it works.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Yeah, well, should I even do that ahead of time before we get into questions?

LIZ WOLFE: Yeah.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: All right. Well, let's back up really quickly on this first question, but just so folks know, the 21 Day Sugar Detox actually has 3 different levels, and if you are coming to it from just a Standard American Diet or a diet that's you know, conventional wisdom about what to eat, what's healthy, what's not? It's really made for anyone. It's not just made for people who are already eating a Paleo or Primal type of diet, which we know a large majority of our audience is eating that way currently, but it does not exclude you if you are totally new to this. So I know a lot of people are also asking…I don't think this is one of the questions we're covering today, but a lot of people ask, you know, oh, do you think my mom can do this? My co-worker, whoever they don't already eat this way, and I say, yes, it's absolutely made for everyone, and that's why I have 3 different levels.
And so the first level is actually something that is a little bit sort of easier and when you get up to the third level, it's a little more restrictive and a little bit harder, and that's what exists for now. There may be additional levels. There are also some modifications in there for athletes and for pregnant/breastfeeding moms, there are some modifications. And yeah, so that's kind of the overall gist of it. It's a whole food based detox. It's not a gimmick. There's no shakes or pills or any of that stuff. I have a guide to some supplements that can help you sort of reduce sugar cravings, help support your body naturally with amino acids, some herbs, vitamins, and minerals. Nothing crazy, nothing you have to buy in order to do the detox. The biggest thing you'll buy is food. You'll spend more money on food than you will on the program. And that's what I want. I want you to learn about eating real foods. So that's really it. You can find out a lot more what's in the guides and all of that at www.21daysugardetox.com.
So that being said, the first question we have was about vinegars. So I've got in the guides lists of what I call the Yes, No, and Sometimes Foods. And so I can't possibly get like every single food imaginable onto these guides, but I've tried to continue to update them with Frequently Asked About, you know, Items or Ingredients, and try to keep them really inclusive. So can I use vinegars like balsamic, apple cider, etc? Yes. The one caveat here is that I want people to be really diligent in checking the form of vinegar that may be added to other items that you're using. So for example, a Dijon mustard. You want to avoid something like a malt vinegar or something that might be wheat based since one of the big food eliminations we have on the 21 Day Sugar Detox is wheat. And so, a lot of sauces that you might find, most of them are probably going to go by the wayside anyway because you're going to read the ingredients, and there'll be some kind of sweetener in there, and those are not allowed. So if it's got, you know, anything, especially high fructose corn syrup, honey, maple syrup, any kind of sweetener added to it, you won't be able to use it. But Dijon mustard is a really good example. Most of them are made with a vinegar, and if it says malt vinegar or it doesn't say it's gluten free, or if it doesn't list the type of vinegar, like apple cider, distilled vinegar, red wine vinegar, then it may not be safe for the Sugar Detox. What typically is safe again, I'll just repeat: apple cider vinegar, balsamic, red wine vinegar, distilled vinegar. Those are typically safe for the Sugar Detox.

LIZ WOLFE: A little interesting fact about pure vinegars, Diane. It is actually technically a fat, a fatty acid. It's called acetic acid. I think probably a lot of people know that, but maybe didn't think about it this way. So I mean, like, any other fat, there's a carboxyl group attached to the carbon molecule, for those science nerds. But the chain is so short, that it doesn't function like a fat like in the traditional sense, which is fun stuff, I think. Sometimes I actually use that to mess with friends who insist on low fat dieting because I'm super evil, and I like to be controversial. So yes, so the biggest concern, I guess, you're saying is avoiding cross-contamination or residue from whatever that source material. I've actually been using some coconut vinegar which I really love. It's really good. A lot like apple cider vinegar, but just a little bit different. Kind of a fun variation. Do you have any thoughts on coconut vinegar?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: It's definitely a safe one for the Sugar Detox. I don't care for it, personally. I purchased it a time ago, and I actually really got away from using vinegar for the most part. I tend to use lemon or lime juice, most of the time lemon juice on salads now. So I really haven't been using much vinegar. I'll use my apple cider vinegar when I make bone broth. I'll use balsamic lately just in some seasonings or on salads now and then because balsamic does have that really different taste, but the acidic nature of apple cider vinegar on a salad…I've just been going for the lemon juice.

LIZ WOLFE: A little too much.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Yeah, I think I was eating every low carb for awhile at one point and really wanted to make sure I got some vitamin C, and so I got really into my fresh lemons, and yeah, I just love having fresh lemon on hand. So, and as a side note, lemons and limes are totally Sugar Detox safe, friendly, etc.

LIZ WOLFE: Sweet. All right, next question. What can I substitute in place of my gum or mints?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: The biggest thing that I recommend for people to…hmmm…substitute for gum and mints is a sweet herbal tea. Usually, I say peppermint tea. It does give you that sort of thing that you can keep sipping while you're at work or at a meeting, and will kind of freshen your breath overall. You could make it into an ice tea, and that will be a little bit cooling as well. Ginger tea, anything that's herbal tea, just because if you're drinking it all day long the way sometimes people will, you know, chew gum or eat mints all day long, I'd rather it not be green or black tea. Green and black tea are both, you know, friendly and safe for the Sugar Detox, but in terms of something that might be perpetuated past dinner, that's what I usually recommend. What about you?

LIZ WOLFE: I don't know.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Yeah.

LIZ WOLFE: I mean, this reminds me of an old David Spade comedy sketch about oral fixations, and I'm just not going to go there. [laughs] I do think that when it comes like to mints and the gum and stuff, I don't know. I feel like it's more of a, number one, a lot of those will be just laden with sugar. I saw some delicious looking mints in an adorable tin the other day at a coffee shop, and they had corn syrup in them, and all kinds of weird stuff. So number one, it's kind of breaking that addiction to having to be feeling like you're eating 100% of the time. Number two, making sure you're not getting those hidden sugars from the gum and the mints, and I don’t know, number three, if this is a question, you know, if somebody's got stanky breath, just in general, you might want to look at your personal care products and actually what you're using to brush your teeth with. Some folks will have a lot of success with halitosis, that type of stuff, with oil pulling, stuff like that. So…

DIANE SANFILIPPO: That’s actually good…well, two things. One, that you kind of brought up. So for the people that aren't familiar, the 21 Day Sugar Detox, you eliminate things that are sweetened, either naturally or artificially, so if people were looking at getting gum or mints, usually they're sweetened with aspartame or some are using like xylitol and sugar alcohols. None of that stuff is allowed on the 21 Day Sugar Detox because part of what we're doing is eliminating a sweet taste. Now there are some exceptions to that. So that's all covered in the guide, but when it comes to things like mints, yeah. It's not okay. People have asked me about like their toothpaste and their mouthwash, and of course, it's due where I'm like well, what kind of toothpaste and mouthwash are you using? You know, we both really like Ora Wellness.

LIZ WOLFE: Mm-hmm.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: It's just an essential oil blend. You use like one or two drops or something like that on your toothbrush. It's great for freshening your breath and it's completely natural, not sweet, and I would definitely recommend that. If people are looking for just a way to kind of freshen their breath, and I think, too, it’s important to know that when you are constantly eating mints or chewing gum, you're sending some signals to your body that it should be priming for food, and I don't want people to be doing that. I don't know that herbal teas really do the same thing. I think because we get some nutrients or some mineral content in herbal teas. There's also obviously a good amount of water, and when they're herbal, they don't have caffeine, it means they won't be a diuretic the same way a caffeinated tea would be, so it's not dehydrating you. It's a better approach, I think, to just kind of changing up those habits, and I think some people find, too, when they chew gum, their stomach starts growling. It used to happen to me. I used to chew gum all day long, and I thought it was a good distraction, but really it was probably just trying to tell my body, hey, we're going to digest food here in just a second, but there was nothing ever coming down into the stomach. So just another, you know…I try and get people off of gum and mints as it is, except for those very special occasions where maybe you have a really hot date. I don't know.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: You know what that's about, but…

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs] Oh, blushing.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: You need a mint, but all day long, chomping on the mints, I don't think so.

LIZ WOLFE: Too cute. Okay, good answer. All right, next question. I'm super hungry. Is this normal and what should I do? So this is kind of like, the difference between maybe identifying undereating vs. the adjustment period of switching to a new source of fuel.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Yeah, so it's really common that people are hungry right away. I think the biggest reason this happen is not because of the lack of sugar. I think the biggest reason this happens is because of a lack of planning and preparation, and a lack of food choices. A lack of enough calories coming in because you just left the house and you didn’t pack enough food for the day and you end up somewhere where you realize you can't eat anything that's there if you're trying to stick to your guns and be on the Sugar Detox. So I think for at least 80% of people, this starving kind of feeling is just a matter of not eating enough food, whatever it is. There's no limit on portion sizes. We're not, you know, telling you, you can only eat X number of calories a day. So what should you do? You should eat more. That's really the first thing. You should definitely make sure you're drinking enough water. A lot of times people, you know, start to get a little bit dehydrated. If this is a very low carbohydrate plan for you vs. what you used to eat, it may be that your body is going through very quickly some of those detox symptoms. It typically does not happen the first couple of days. It typically kicks in days 2 to 5, where your body is no longer being given sugar all day long. And by sugar, I mean, sugar and very dense forms of carbohydrates, like grain products, anything refined. Even stuff like white potatoes or sweet potatoes, which again, there are some variations for people who are working out more, which we'll talk about in just a couple minutes, but for some people that transition time is a little bit painful in the sense that you get a little hungry, and that's because your body just is not that efficient at burning fat for fuel yet while you are making that transition.
And so, for some people, you kind of have to ride it out. But for most people, what I tell them is make sure you're eating enough. Be honest with yourself. Did you plan and pack food? Are you super hungry because you really did not eat enough food? And talk to some people on the Facebook page. Ask them what kind of meals they're having. Ask how big they are. See what, you know, see what you're serving up. I know that even at my gym, I think I mentioned this on a previous podcast, but if somebody's tuning in just for this one specifically, I had…we did a challenge at the gym, a nutrition challenge, and one of the guys at the gym is probably around 200 pounds. He posted a picture of his lunch, and he's just big, not fat or overweight or whatever, he just is a bigger guy. And he posted a picture of a salad with like one or two strips of bacon and a few chunks of chicken, and I just kind of commented back, like that looks like almost, like diet food, and that's not enough food for a small female, and it's definitely not enough food for a large male. And he just admitted, you know, I wasn't prepared and I left the house. So this is where, you know, there are some tips and tricks for what to eat when you're dining eat and how to handle that. You can run to a store. You can grab some things. It's not super easy, but planning and preparation is really what you should do to avoid becoming super hungry because most of the time it's undereating that's really doing it. `

LIZ WOLFE: You are so good at speaking extemporaneously. How did you do all that without notes? That was just really good.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Mocking me and [xxx]

LIZ WOLFE: Are you mocking me? All right. What?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: What?

LIZ WOLFE: Next question. Is becoming extra cranky while on the 21 Day Sugar Detox normal?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: How cranky are they normally?

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs] Don't blame the Sugar Detox for your….for your bad attitude.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I think…this really ties into the previous question, and I think part of it is just being a little bit annoyed that you “can't eat certain things” that will be around you. I definitely advise as often as possible changing your environment, so, you know, if you've got a spouse or a significant other or family that you can get on board with doing the Sugar Detox with you, it's a little bit less dreadful, I suppose. I know when I do the Sugar Detox, I rope in people like Liz or Bill and Hayley from Food Lovers or George over at Civilized Caveman. I'm like, who's going to do this with me? Because it's not as much fun as eating, you know, things that have sweetener in them. It's just not. And you know, I designed this program because I like things that are sweet, and I think that we all need a break from them from time to time. So is…is becoming extra cranky normal? It is kind of normal. I think it generally passes usually after the first week and sort of detox and/or sugar burning reasons. I think that generally the last week you might be a little cranky just because you're kind of ready to be done with it, and I think it’s important to kind of stick to your guns and you know, follow through with it for the last week. You will feel really proud of yourself and physically you'll feel great. Mentally, I think you'll feel great, but, you know, your body will feel different after that last week, and I think that is…I think the last week is the hardest week. I think the first week is almost pretty easy for a lot of people, the second week can be tough, and that last week, you're just kind of like, I just want a piece of fruit. You know, something different than what's allowed on the Sugar Detox program, so…

LIZ WOLFE: Very good. All right, so next question. Can you clarify what an athlete is and when an athlete should eat? I think the question is more about, you know, you probably give some…some extra tips and extra pointers and things that are allowed for athletes and stuff like that vs. non-athletes and when and what they should be eating.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: So there's modifications for athletes in the program guide. And this really kicked in pretty shortly after I launched it the first time. Just realizing that while absolutely fuel on very low carbohydrate plans, eating a lot more fat, most people who are sort of working out with some intensity feel a lot better when they get more carbohydrates in, and that doesn't mean 300 grams a day necessarily. But what it does mean is that after a workout, if you come home and you just eat a salad and some protein and you don't get any starchy carbohydrates in, you may not feel great the next day. And if you're feeling fine, just following the standard protocol, that's totally fine because perhaps for you that athlete recommendation, perhaps your workouts aren't intense enough to really require that. But if you're not feeling great, if your energy's low, if you're finding that your strength in the gym is not good, then following those athlete recommendations is a good idea. And when I say athlete, it really means anybody who's training with intensity, and you know, a lot of people have come into the program have been CrossFitters and so I had to kind of add that information because most of us don't feel great without carbohydrates. You can get pretty lean without them. Your body loses water and aesthetically you might be doing really well. So looking super lean does not always equate to better performance or feeling better. So hopefully that clarifies things, you know. If you identify yourself as an athlete, then you're an athlete. We had one kettlebell trainer. I can link to her…I can link to her blog post about just doing…she did my Athletic Performance program in Practical Paleo, but what she was doing before was not eating enough carbohydrates and so if people are interested in hearing how that really affects your performance, you know, it kind of affects everything. You might not sleep that well. Your recovery won't be great because of it, and then your performance the next day isn't that great either. So anyway, that's really it. I consider myself an athlete at this point. If I'm training regularly, I'm in the gym 3, 4, sometimes 5 days a week, and not all of those days are intense. Some are recovery days, but I'm trying to make sure I'm getting in enough carbohydrate because I absolutely notice that my performance is so much better when I'm getting them into my diet.

LIZ WOLFE: Would you consider a breakdance fighter to be an athlete?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Yes.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs] Does a chicken have large talons? Okay. Next question. Why can we have green apple or a green tipped banana, but no berries, which have lower sugar content?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I was just laughing because you're randomly quoting Napoleon Dynamite, and the people who tune into this podcast who've never listened to the podcast before and think that we might possibly be serious the whole time.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Gee.

LIZ WOLFE: We're gunning for a radio show on Howard Stern's network. We're gunning for Sirius-S-I-R-I-U-S, not serious S-E-R-I-O-U-S.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I'm going screenshot Liz right now.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: She twisted her hair into what look like antennae. I'm not actually going to…

LIZ WOLFE: Okay.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: But my teaching partner, everyone. Okay.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: So why can't we have a green-tipped, eh, why can we have green apples or green-tipped bananas, but not berries? So I love this question because it shows that people are really paying attention to what they're eating, and they know what's what when it comes to sugar and carbs content of different foods. And I mean that, you know, for the folks who want to know and need to know these different values. So this whole 21 Day Sugar Detox thing isn't just about changing the foods you're eating and being on a super low carb eating plan. In fact, it’s not even very low carb at all, if you compare it to say, ketogenic diet. A ketogenic diet will require carbs be around 30 grams a day, moderate protein intake, meaning probably not even a gram per pound of body weight, maybe more like half a gram, and if you were to simply eat decent servings of non-starchy vegetables, like you just pile your plate with non-starchy vegetables, you know, you would probably eat anywhere from 50 to 100 grams of carbs a day pretty easily. And that's not super low. You're not going into ketosis. It's a good amount of carbohydrates, and I'm talking about things like bell peppers, onions, summer squash, like zucchini and yellow squash, which is non-starchy compared to winter squash, which would be like acorn, butternut, those types of things. So that said, the 21 Day Sugar Detox is not really just about eating foods low in carbs or even just low in sugar, it's also about cutting down on the sweet taste and about changing your habits. And so in over 2 years of running the program, I found that the allowance of a green apple, either one green apple per day or one green-tipped banana per day tends to keep people in check. A lot of people really enjoy having that one piece of fruit. It does not seem to derail their progress. There are some people who say, you know, they do it the first time, and they allow themselves to have that, and then they try it a second time without that. And I don't have any problem with that. Do it however you want to, but I think that the big thing about the berries, which again, have lower sugar content, it's just more about changing habits and giving that structure of like, here's what's included in the program. It's not…it's not really just about sugar and carb content. It's adjusting your habits and your taste. Berries can be very sweet, even if they have a lower sugar content, and I think that we can really come to rely on that sweet taste. And the green apple's pretty tart. The green-tipped banana is not very sweet. It's more starchy than sweet when it's under ripe, which is why we say green-tipped. And so people do find that, you know, it hits the spot with them in terms of, you know, it's a tiny bit sweet because what they're eating all day is not sweet at all. But it really doesn't overload the palate with super sweet things. And also it starts to taste a lot sweeter as the weeks go on. That green apple that to some people is pretty tart in the beginning, by the end, they're like, wow, I can't believe how sweet a green apple tastes. So that's really what's it's about. That's really it.

LIZ WOLFE: Planned in mind games with people.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: It works, man. It's a good, good discipline, disciplinary approach.

LIZ WOLFE: I like it. I like how you have integrated, not just the professional knowledge you have of nutrition and how this stuff works for folks, but also the way it's applied practically. I think that's why it's so successful because you've taken both of those worlds into account.
Okay, next question. Can I do this detox while eating a vegetarian diet? I'm excited to hear the answer to this.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: You can do the 21 Day Sugar Detox as a vegetarian. You would be most likely doing level 1. I think you could also do level 2. There are some variations in terms of possible inclusion of some grains in very small quantities, and it's very specific about which are okay vs. not okay. And also the inclusion of dairy and which forms you can be eating. I have had several vegetarians complete the program, who I was friends with. So they were very communicative with me about what they were eating. They were very active on the page, and so, you know, they're relying on more eggs. Some of them are eating fish, so they're eating fish. Dairy products, again if you're on level 1 or 2, the dairy products are included. If you are looking to get protein from powders and more processed forms, you won't be able to do it on the Sugar Detox. So the only type of approved protein powders are ones that are 100% single ingredient, and so while I deter people from things like a 100% hemp protein in my sort of normal life, of what I would recommend as a good source of protein, for the sake of the 21 Day Sugar Detox, if you're vegetarian, then you really need that to help you get through this and it's important to you to detox from sugar because you are relying on too many refined foods, refined grain products, etc., then that's okay. And those are written out, explained within the yes and no food guides. If you are vegan eating no animal products, it may be quite difficult. It's not impossible, however. It just requires again a lot more planning. You'll be relying on more nuts and seeds, more avocado, veggies, etc., and it's just not going to have the same protein content, but I think upping the fat content will help satiety really, really greatly. So I am working on a page in the guide that will have some modifications or just some notes for if you're eating a vegetarian diet, what to kind of look out for and how to focus what's going on your plate, so that you are, you know, avoiding the things like the processed soy and the veggie burgers and, you know, all the things that are not made with just real food. Because I don't really, you know, I don't believe in that way of eating, but I don't think that every single person who avoids animal products will necessarily have problems. I can't tell you that no person can be healthy without them. I think that it's really important that people are all avoiding processed and refined foods. And so that's really the stance that I take in terms of the Sugar Detox because I do want it to be welcoming and all-encompassing so that everyone can kind of get started and maybe there's a different level that they'll approach it at, and there is a whole page that explains, you know, if you are starting eating x, y, z, then level 1 is right for you, and so on and so forth for levels 2 and 3. And again, I will be adding some modifications or just some notes on if you're eating a vegetarian or vegan diet, what might be helpful for you on the Sugar Detox. So short answer. Yes.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs] Yes, by the book. All right. Next question. Can I sweeten my coffee and if so, with what? Diane, I can't remember if I told you this. I recently gave, well, I can't remember if I told you this story. I know that I told you I went out to the Air Force Academy and did some workshops for their first responders, but it was hilarious because the first day, I had a guy asking questions just like this one. This is a guy who really bought into the whole like Real Food lifestyle. He was a major leader out of the group. The guys really looked up to him, so to have him asking questions and participating like that was really great. And you know, I wanted to foster that engagement, so I was giving what I felt like were really deep and thoughtful answers to his questions, you know. The why and the reasoning behind, you know, all of my answers. And then he asked this question. And what he was really doing was looking for, you know, permission. He was looking for a substitute for sweeteners in his coffee or maybe it was dairy in his coffee, I can't remember. But the same principle applies. He was looking for permission or some kind of something to serve as a, I don't know, as a surrogate for what he actually wanted to be eating. So, you know, rather than being diplomatic and professional, I basically told him really simply that he needed to man up, and I probably used more colorful language than that because that's the idiotic, you know, crap that I do at inappropriate times that you know, United States service academies and such. But I basically told him that he should just, you know, grow up and drink his coffee black. We hem and haw about this stuff, and oh, but I like this in my coffee, and well, what do I do to substitute for this, and the fact is, it's just coffee. If you can't drink it black, then it's not the coffee you like in the first place. It's the creamer or the sweetener or whatever. Black coffee. Or just ditch the coffee altogether and have a cup of warm water with ginger and lemon, you know. Just change the habit entirely. It's pretty simple. Black coffee. Am I wrong?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: My short answer is no. You cannot sweeten coffee. The cardinal rule of the 21 Day Sugar Detox is that we cannot sweeten things. There are sort of…with sweeteners, You know, I think some people kind of get around things a little bit by adding their green apple or their green tipped banana to something else. I'm okay with that. But I'm talking about a bottle of, you know, honey, maple syrup, agave, you know, any artificial sweeteners that people are using. None of that stuff is allowed. We are not adding sugar or sweeteners to things that we're eating or drinking. Period. So what you can add to coffee if you're on levels 1 or 2, you can add full fat heavy cream, preferably from grass-fed cows. You can add full fat coconut milk. And that for some people that sweetens the coffee a little bit and they become surprised. Same thing with the full fat heavy cream. You know, I absolutely am pro the black coffee approach for people who are, you know, doing level 3 and want to try that, especially if they’re sensitive to dairy and they want to give that a whirl, or if they are even sensitive to coconut, or they're sensitive to the one additive that's a texturizer in canned coconut milk. But so, I know that the question was a little bit specific, but I think it's a broader question because a lot of people ask, you know, what can I put in my coffee and then I think your point's good about changing that habit. I quit coffee many months ago now. I've since maybe had it fewer times than I can count on one hand, maybe 4times. And I do have five fingers on each hand. But…

LIZ WOLFE: For now.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: For now…? When the radioactive parts of New Jersey kick in and…

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I, you know, have not had a good experience with it for the most part. The last time I tried it at home, it really made my head weird. So, you know, I do encourage people to use this time and take this opportunity to possibly do a caffeine detox as well. Listen, if this is going to be painful for you as it stands, you may as well just go whole hog and ditch the caffeine, and perhaps you've done the Sugar Detox before, have had good results and don't find it that difficult, but you are drinking coffee every day. So that's another opportunity. Take this time. Do it for 21 days. Give it a whirl. See what happens.
One of the things that we are allowed to have, “allowed” is 8 ounces of kombucha per day, and that does have a few grams of sugar in it. Once it's been fermented, there's sugar left behind, but I know that we’re not eating dairy and I do like for people to be eating probiotic foods, etc. We have a sort of limitation or a portion control on kombucha because I think that people are feeling good drinking it. It's not really getting in the way of their Sugar Detox, and I'm okay with it as a really natural product that's not made with, you know, a whole list of ingredients. Like a lot of supplements people will ask me about that, that I tell them they can't be taking while they're on the Sugar Detox. Things like Juice Plus and Shakeology are not allowed on the Sugar Detox. I want people to really get away from a lot of the powders and things like that.
Something also, this is kind of a side note. Maybe I'll pop out a little time stamp for this one too so that people can kind of get this question answered. But as I said about the kombucha that is allowed, also another exception to the rule on things with sweeteners, as I think…oh, actually, you know what? I'll address this with the next question. Sorry about that.

LIZ WOLFE: All good.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: So…

LIZ WOLFE: So the next question is, what if some of the foods on the yes list have sugar on the label? Example: cheese shows one gram of sugar, bacon will sometimes show sugar content, etc. Is that okay?

DIANE SANFILIPPO: So the reason why cheese is showing a gram of sugar is that it's lactose. That's milk sugar. So yes, that's okay. There's not sugar in the ingredients. And yes, in terms of grams. If it's like 1 or 2 grams, I generally say yes, it's okay. Read the ingredients, however. If it's some kind of sweetener listed early in the ingredients, meaning there's more of it than a lot of other ingredients, then avoid that item and pick something else. So in the case of dairy, it's lactose. It's milk sugar. It's not added sweetener. That's okay. Bacon is a really good example as well. It’s often cured with some kind of sugar or maple syrup. The resulting carb and sugar content in the bacon itself is negligible. If you even see one gram on the label, probably that's the most you ever see unless it’s a very thick cut bacon. Maybe there's 2. It won't impact your ability to get away from the sugar and carb cravings, both in my personal and in my clinical experience with thousands of people who have completed the program. I just don't see it as an issue. I don't have an issue. I don't have an issue with any of that, and I think it's…yes, it's okay. So that's the short answer.
The other food item that people ask about sometimes because you and I both recommend fermented cod liver oil/butter oil blend. It has a flavoring that comes from cinnamon, but there's also some stevia in it. This is another exception to the rule, and you know, I make some exceptions to the rule and some things get ruled out, like I was mentioning before like Shakeology and Juice Plus get ruled out. Too many ingredients, but I think the benefit that's coming from, you know, people being on their daily routine of fermented cod liver oil/butter oil or even just the fermented cod liver oil with that flavoring, again I don't think that's getting in the way, whereas I think drinking a whole glass of, you know, a huge shake with again ingredients that I'm not quite sure about, that's the stuff that I question. But this is stuff that I don't really question.

LIZ WOLFE: Okay. So…

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Any thoughts from you on the sugar in bacon, for example? I know we've kind of talked about that a little bit before. Folks ask about it at workshops.

LIZ WOLFE: Yes, people ask about it a lot, and people are so terrified of a little bit of sugar, when it comes to cured meats. When they see that word on the label. But what's actually going on is that sugar tenderizes the meat, so in sugar-free, say bacon, you will probably have a slightly different texture. Not always, but often. So when you look at something like beef jerky or bacon, some sausages, you'll actually use that sugar to tenderize the meat, and then as you cure it, that sugar actually evaporates. It's not really present in the final product although some folks do choose to still list it on the label, so we get a lot of questions. Like when I talk to people about PaleoKits, the fact that there is like apple juice concentrate or pineapple juice concentrate on the label, wondering, you know, if that's, you know, whatever, Paleo street legal or what have you. And I say it again and again, it's just how meat is preserved. It's totally legit process, contributes to the texture, and actually can inhibit bad bacterial growth. So there is a reason and you know, sometimes, sugar can be useful. Not what we want it to be useful for, but I think that's kind of important for folks to realize because I do think… I think bacon’s a decent food if you've got some good, you know, pastured pork and I also think that good, high quality beef jerky can be a lifesaver for a lot of people. You know, if you're stuck in a Wonder Bread factory, like we’ve talked about, which unfortunately, Wonder Bread is now closing. They're out of my hometown, Lenexa, Kansas, the Hostess bakery, it is now gone. That's the rumor. Nobody has to worry about getting stuck in the bread factory. But the point is, don't be afraid of a little bit of sugar on the label of something, I think, that is otherwise very clean like beef jerky because that stuff can really help you in a pinch, so…

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I think for the purpose of the Sugar Detox, again, if it is…if it is in the ingredient list, but the actual grams of sugar are like 1 or 2, then you'll be okay, and that's, you know, it's also up to you to kind of determine, is this thing sweet? Am I eating it for sweetness or not? And I don't think most people are eating bacon for sweetness. I don't think most people are eating beef jerky for sweetness. I think you have to make that call. There has to be sort of this, you know, I've taught you the sort of principles of this, and I can't really give people a ruling on every single food item that we'll come across, so understand that the general principle is to have a low sugar content from specifically packaged foods. I say that, and if there is a sweetener in the ingredient list, like a sugar or something that's used for curing or preservation, that the grams are like 1 or 2, you know. 3, 4, 5, higher, is it sweet? You know, are you eating it for sweetness? If it's not sweet, you're not eating it for sweetness, then that might be okay, and you're going to have to make that call for yourself. If you find that you start going nuts on that food because it is making it into something sweet, then, you know, pull back on it and see what happens.

LIZ WOLFE: Good, good, good. All right, so the last question. I think this is an appropriate one. So what can I do to keep from going ballistic on sweets on Day 22? Again.[laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I think this is from some folks who've done the program a few times. I think it'll be different for different people, and what ends up happening for the most part is when people kind of take that one day to experiment a little bit, eat the one or two things that they were really missing, and feel what happens as a result. And I think…I don't know what I can tell you to do to keep from going ballistic other than perhaps to do it once and see how you feel. So I love this question because the first time I did a 21 Day Sugar Detox, I did go ballistic on sweets on Day 22. I was hungry. It was probably 3 or 4 o’clock in the afternoon. Time for me perhaps have a snack. Maybe I'd worked out that morning. I don't even know. But I was hungry and I went to the candy store that was around the corner from the Starbucks that I was working in. This is years ago now. And I probably got about a half a pound of gummy candies, which I have not eaten that stuff in now a very long time. I've since replaced gummy candy with dried mango.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: when I really want something with that texture, largely because gummy candies are mostly sweetened with glucose syrup, which is derived from wheat. I know, you can really get me to stop eating most things if you just tell me it's derived from wheat. But that said, I kind of went face first into a bag of gummy candy. Kind of my Kryptonite.

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: And about probably an hour later, after the sugar high wore off, and I had started crashing, I, no joke, was standing in my kitchen by myself…I think I was hitting a hypoglycemic attack like I've never felt before. I was shaky, I was sweaty, I was getting lightheaded, and I was actually really scared I was going to be that single girl who like passes out in her apartment and her cat starts pawing at her, and…

LIZ WOLFE: [laughs]

DIANE SANFILIPPO: I was drinking raw milk now and then, and so I had some milk in the fridge, and I slugged down, you know, a small cup of it, sat there for a couple minutes, slugged down another cup of it, because I basically was really going into some hypoglycemic shock. It was so hard on my system. And I tell you what? From that day, I knew that that was not something I could do anymore. You know, I know what my limits are now, and I'm not saying that every person needs to do that, but I think with some things, it's a matter of taking…what's the one food that you really missed while you were doing the Sugar Detox, have it, see how you feel. See how you behave around that food. Do you go nuts around that food? Is it the food's fault? You know, is it the fact that it's like hyperpalatable? You're combining sweet, salty, and fatty. Is it an amazing texture and you just can't stop eating it? I even said this about our beloved Hail Merrys, you know. I can eat those for as long as they're in front of me, whereas dark chocolate, it's so intense and the texture’s so different, that a little bit, and I don't want to eat the whole bar. But something that's got a texture, so you know, watch how your body feels. Watch how your behavior is. And just try and be mindful and have that sort of foresight going into that next day and even that next week. Like hey, what did I just do? I just pulled all this stuff out of my diet. Do I really want to eat all of that this next day? If you really do, just pay attention to what’s going on, just, you know, gain some awareness and learn something from it. Don't let it be for nothing. I do actually have a blog post, you know; it's called “My nutrition challenge is over. Now what?” A lot of additional ideas in there. We'll link to it in the show notes on the blog post so you can get to that. But I think everyone's got a different way of handling coming off of the Detox, and you know, for a lot of us, it's a reset. It's something that we do, maybe once or twice a year. Maybe quarterly. And you know, we just get ourselves back into check, and I think it's okay that that happens. I think we all can have pretty healthy relationships with food, but still get into those situations where, you know, it's the holidays or, you know, you just are on vacation for awhile or whatever happens and you just start slipping into the sweet stuff is my day more than it should be zone, and so I think, you know, having that little bit of foresight and sort of checking in with yourself is really the best thing you can do.

LIZ WOLFE: Just do your best to balance your mind during the whole process. Don’t let a nutritional reset be an excuse for manifesting a bunch of neurotic behavior about food. That’s not what this is about. So…

DIANE SANFILIPPO: Totally. It's more about the challenge of the behavior change.

LIZ WOLFE: Right.

DIANE SANFILIPPO: You know, and not about the food. Like the yes/no list is there to make it easy for people. It's not there to make you crazy about like this ingredient or that ingredient, or this, you know, vegetable or that vegetable. It's really more because people keep asking than what I think people really need is just some sort of structure and some sort of all right, let's change the way I'm thinking. Not going to eat sweet foods and here's how I'm going to do this. So yeah, it should, should be pretty straightforward.

LIZ WOLFE: All right, so hopefully everybody got some good answers to their questions along with a little bit of ridiculousness. That's the standard goofball that makes its way into this show now and then. We’ll be back next week with more questions. Until then, if you want to join the biggest group ever to kick off the 21 Day Sugar Detox on January 1st, 2013, hop over to www.21daysugardetox.com. That's 2-1 Day Sugar Detox. com. Don't forget to come see Diane and myself live in person at an event next year. Dates are listed on the Balanced Bites website and more are being added in the next few weeks. I'm really excited about our schedule. I think it's going to be a fun workshop schedule in 2013. And other than that, you can find Diane at www.blog.balancedbites.com, and you can find me, Liz, at www.cavegirleats.com. You can find both of our books on Amazon: Practical Paleo is out, you can buy it now. And my book Modern Cave Girl will be released in May, but it is available for pre-order. so thanks for listening. We'll be back next week.

Cheers!
Diane & Liz